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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. race — a contest
  3. mug — to rob
  4. race — the arms race
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. craft — a skill
  7. race — humankind
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. craft — boats
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. press — newspapers
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. mug — a face
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. press — to push
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. mug — a cup
  18. fork — in a road
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — the tool
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. press — a publisher
  24. tear — to rip

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com